Spring is in the air

I'd Know You Anywhere

The grass is growing, the trees are budding, and the flowers are opening. Take a spring break in the garden with these reads!

I’d Know You Anywhere, My Love

By Nancy Tillman

Feiwel and Friends, 2013, hardcover, $17.99, Ages 3-6

Mother’s child pretends to be a rhinoceros and father’s little one is a fox! No matter what shape the child takes, mother and father can always recognize a smile, a laugh, or a kiss. Baby animals abound in this tender picture book told in rhyming stanzas. Children will love pretending to be different critters as they read along with this sweet story that is perfect for Mother’s Day.

Split! Splat!

Written by Amy Gibson & Illustrated by Steve Björkman

Scholastic, 2012, hardcover, $16.99, Ages 3-5

Rain pip pop pats and drip drop taps against the windows, but that’s no reason to stay indoors! There are umbrellas to twirl, puddles to jump, and mud to squish between your toes. This sing-songy story that brightly illustrates fun in the rain, mud, and sun will make readers yearn for a spring shower.

Animals In My Backyard: Earthworms

By Aaron Carr

AV2 by Weigl, 2014, hardcover, $12.95, Ages 3-5

Get up close and personal with earthworms! This introductory non-fiction volume gives readers information about a worm’s body, senses, and locomotion, complete with detailed photographs. Additional facts in the end pages provide grown-up readers with more wormy goodness to share. Fans of this book will know loads about their crawly friends when they spring out of the dirt.

Baseball Is…

Written by Louise Borden & Illustrated by Raúl Colón

Margaret K. McElderry, 2014, hardcover, $17.99, Ages 6-8

What is baseball? A spring sport, a piece of American history, or a ball caught in the stands? Read this poetic non-fiction picture book and learn how it is all that and more! Accessible illustrations and baseball terminology provide entertainment and basic facts to elementary school enthusiasts. Take this one out to the ballgame!

Frosting and Friendship

By Lisa Schroeder

Aladdin, 2013, hardcover, $15.99, Ages 8-12

Lily is in over her head. Not only did she join the Baking Bookworms mother-daughter book club when she has no baking skills whatsoever, but she also promised to host a Sweet Thirteen party and audition for the school’s Spring Fling with her band. Will she be able to do it all? This middle grade novel taps into tween truths about family and friendships – and includes two bonus recipes!

Dangerous Girls

By Abigail Haas

Simon Pulse, 2013, hardcover, $16.99, Ages 14-18

For Anna, spring break in Aruba should be about partying in the sun, laying on the beach, and spending time with her boyfriend. What it shouldn’t be about is her best friend’s murder. Soon Anna is standing trial in a foreign country, pleading for her innocence while the rest of the world is sure of her guilt. This page-turning young adult courtroom drama is full of twists and turns, and motives and lies. Recommended to older teen readers who are open to the darker side of paradise – and spring break.

Deena Viviani is a Rochester-based Young Adult Services Librarian who writes reviews for VOYA and the RACWI Newsletter. Read more reviews on her blog www.deenaml.livejournal.com or send her a note at DeenaViviani@hotmail.com – she loves to hear from readers!